In Perfect Victims, Mohammed El-Kurd argues that attempts to “humanize” Palestinians reinforce the Zionist politics they purport to contest.
In Perfect Victims, Mohammed El-Kurd argues that attempts to “humanize” Palestinians reinforce the Zionist politics they purport to contest.
it sounds kinda ambiguous at first but the article is a pretty good read imo. it depicts the “perfection” that is used to display victims n gaza and which (imo) was used against them when people fought back. The western leaders and press used this to switch from “tragedy” to “rightful counterattack” instead of understanding the horrendous situation in its entirety.
The reason it caught my eye was because recently I had come across a passage in a reading comprehension quiz which tried to critique the usage of “women and children” counts in the reporting of Gazan casualties but either I failed the comprehension part or it was liberal nonsense. This article and the book it is about are closely related but in contrast the points made here are excellent. Israel had crossed the line of barbarity/inhumanity/whatever long before they murdered Hind Rajab. That pro-Palestine voices are squeamish about voicing unequivocal support for, say, a 30 year old Palestinian man who ended up joining armed resistance is an excellent observation that is worth grappling with.